We’re fast approaching the end of the year and with it thoughts of the future begin to occupy the quieter moments. But after a monumental year what will reflection and planning for 2021 look like?
I can’t speak for anyone else, if you feel that 2020 needs to be forgotten as quickly as possible, I can’t blame you. But, for my part, I feel that this year has given me so much to contemplate, has brought so many things into focus. It has challenged and galvanised me like no other, so for that I need to give it some attention. When I think about this time last year, and the decade review I had planned, how it felt important to spend some time acknowledging all that I had experienced in the previous ten years, and to look ahead with renewed energy. Well, I have to laugh a little for 2019 Melody. She may have thought she’d figured it out and had some big expectations for 2020 and beyond, but they were nothing like the reality that unfolded.
This year I’m unpicking the process I go through as one year ends and another begins. Although I follow a seasonal timetable, using the solstices and equinoxes as markers for reflection, I still like to do a full overview in the new year. But I’m also mindful of my personal rhythms, how January doesn’t really feel like the fresh start it used to, how March often brings more of a new energy feeling. Because of this I often don’t make firm plans that begin in January, if I make them at all. But I can’t deny that January is still the time most of us pause to take a look back, as well as look forward, and so this year I want to share my process with you in case you are looking for new way to do your new year planning. Over the next few weeks on the blog I’ll deconstruct my thoughts as I navigate this unusual end of year/new year threshold.
My approach
Take things slowly
As someone with a regular practice of reflecting I’ve come to realise that these things can’t be rushed. It’s so tempting to block out time in the diary and feel like it has to be done then, but flexibility and an awareness of how you’re feeling at the time are so important. There is no point reviewing or planning if you feel rubbish. It needs to happen at a time when you have energy and are feeling emotionally balanced, otherwise the headspace you are in will bring its own biases and colour the entire process.
It’s ok to take things slowly. This does not need to happen on one day, or during the first week of January. It’s fine if you are still waiting to do your new year planning in February. The only schedule that matters is your own wellbeing. Just as during the review I highlight responding to your needs and priorities, the same is true of the process itself.
Break it down
As well as slowing things down, I also no longer attempt to do all the work in one block. It’s just far too much to deal with in one go. I have realised that I go through 3 distinct phases during this process and they all deserve independent time and space:
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Reflect
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Review
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Plan
For me, the Reflect and Review stages are distinct, although there can often be some overlap. The key difference is that Reflecting is general and Reviewing is specific.
When I reflect I connect to what is important for me so that when I start reviewing and planning I am doing it in a relevant and authentic way. The reflection process isn’t looking at distinct events or experiences; it is taking a holistic overview of who I am, how I want to be in the world – the things I need to hold onto and be mindful of when I make judgements on the individual things, later.
The review process is very specific. It’s when I go through all the things I did, or experienced, in the year before. I look at everything – work and life events. I consider how they made me feel, how much energy they took or gave me, whether they aligned with my values. This detailed approach means that I gain a better understanding of what I want more of or less of in the future. I know which things I can change and which I am obliged to do, but most importantly I can decide how I want to approach them, how I want to experience them in the year ahead.
Planning is a loose term for what I do, because as I’ve mentioned before, I’m not entirely convinced by things like goal-setting or detailed plans. However, I like to think of this stage as the place where I create a path ahead, or set a direction, one that responds to my needs at the end of the year and is sustainable for me, other people and the planet (in as much as I can control these things). If I do plan it is with a light touch that allows for possibility, opportunity and serendipity.
My new reflecting, reviewing & planning course – Reimagine 2021 – starts on 11th January. You can learn more and book your place here.
If you’re on your journey already and would like some support, I’ve gathered all my resources together in one place here on my website.